Satellite inmarsat services help in connecting smart grid technologies applications as well as Satellite SCADA supported networks that provide ever-present IP connectivity in utility services in an entire territory. One of the renowned global mobile commercial satellite communication network set up by Inmarsat is the award-winning Inmarsat-4 (1-4) satellites. Offering Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN), Inmarsat-4 concurrently delivers both voice and broadband data and has a gained a strong base in sectors such as oil and gas, international aid agencies, and broadcast media.
Moreover, Inmarsat introduced BGAN M2M and this is a two-way IP services for data transmission only. The BGAN M2M is ideal for low, high frequency transmissions, which are required in normal automated data reporting right from Smart Grid and Satellite SCADA application. Some of the benefits of satellite Inmarsat services are;
Smart Grids Metering
The advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) of the Smart Grids helps consumer manage their energy consumption by providing utilities based on visible demand. The meters are connected to aggregation points, which collect data from consumers in a given geographical area and transmit back to the data center of the utility in a fixed link or cellular network.
However, since cellular networks experience restricted bandwidth and are faced with congestion, coupled with their vulnerability to natural disasters, then it means that bgan inmarsat offers a better option. It is accessible in areas where cellular and fixed line coverage is not available. Therefore the BGAN is a cost effective and high quality option for backhaul usage data experienced in advanced concentrators or aggregation points and this allows utilities to reach entire networks and offer energy solutions to the entire customer base.
Automated distribution
The deployment of BGAN or BGAN M2M network connectivity infrastructure alongside power distribution lines offers a primary or secondary link to the utility’s data center. This provides monitoring and control of switches, reclosers and other devices on the distribution network, recording any voltage fluctuations, outrages and also consumer energy demand. This kind of data helps in making real-time decisions on smart grid energy based on ready hand information.
Connectivity in substations
Inmarsat offers Satellite SCADA or equivalent applications at electricity substations and these could be standalone or combined with VSAT. Such connections help reach out to the locations where it is difficult or costly to apply fixed-line and cellular communication. BGAN connectivity guarantees data streaming all the time since it can work in both low-volume/high-frequency data traffic situations or in high-volume/low frequency data streaming situations. And in addition, there is a backup communication in every substation.
Disaster recovery application
In times of disasters, the Satellite Inmarsat communication terminals are deployed quickly to offer alternative communications and this helps in diagnosing problem issues pretty fast and thus offer solutions immediately. This reliability aspect of the Inmarsat connectivity substantiates the reason why it has widely been used by organizations such as the American Red Cross and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide immediate and dependable communication for coordinating disaster relief.
Smart Grid Communications
As energy utilities seek for electricity grids that offer greater scalability and control over energy consumption; it is certain Smart Grid communication will play a big role in managing energy costs. The Smart Grid is dynamic and interactive infrastructure that offers real-time solutions in energy consumption and cost control. The Smart Grid communication helps enhance operational efficiency and extends the accessibility of network across the utility’s entire service territory.
In essence, Inmarsat BGAN and the data only BGAN M2M, which supports Satellite SCADA applications, are critical energy utility network solutions and offer real-time data, which helps in management of energy consumption as well as improves operational efficiency through workforce mobility enhancement.
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
What are the Benefits of Lean Consulting?
Businesses need to embrace the benefits of lean consulting in order to turn around their performance towards increased productivity while at the same time maintaining high level of customer relations. Lean is a process that helps create value for the benefit of the end user customer and it is looped around elimination of waste and utilization of resources in an optimal manner.
The cornerstone to Lean is continuous improvement and this helps in improving people and processes so that they can achieve better results with either the same resources or even less. In essence, lean applies in virtually any process or person’s activities and therefore, has a wide application in the improvement of people and processes.
The lean process thrives in all sectors and disciplines ranging from social care to the medical and engineering fields. In people lean consulting helps in optimizing the workers talents, willpower, knowhow, efforts, time and efforts and translate them into results while adding value by minimizing wastes and improving outputs.
This process eliminates aspects, which increase unnecessary costs, wastes of space, underutilized time and knowledge as well as the non-optimized resource applications. Lean process helps leaders to have the time to be able to lead others. It embraces leading by example. It helps businesses organize their space at the workplace by eliminating the underutilized space.
Space utilization is one of the aspects, which bring a lot of expenses to businesses, which could otherwise be eliminated. For instance, the arrangement of office and production areas could help improve the time workers take to move from one location to another. It also helps streamline the workflow in these critical production areas.
In addition, the lean consulting helps develop a team of workers that fosters resilience, engagement, morale, enthusiasm, flexibility, accountability and optimal use of resources with reduced wastages. There are different types of lean consulting and these include productivity, time, production cost, inventory, floor space, quality, transportation, and human skills.
Different lean practices are carried out to address the commonly identified wastes in business processes. Overproduction is one of the processes, which can cost businesses a lot of money and the lean consultancy helps addresses aspects of overproduction in order to reduce wastes. Organization of time is also a key element of the lean process as it minimizes the time people spend waiting and staying idle.
The movement of people and materials in a plant or business premises should be re-arranged and restructured to ensure that it adds value to the product and service. The inventory control needs to be managed so that there is no excess supply of inventory in business, which could remain underutilized or unsold in the warehouses.
Peoples need to translate their efforts, knowledge, talents and time into results and therefore, they need to be transformed to use the best of their unique skills and abilities. Quality control needs to be enhanced so that there are reduced defects, which could lead to reduced value of products and services.
In essence, lean thinking, though has its origin on the automotive industry; it has successfully been transferred to virtually all disciplines and produce great improvements in elimination of various types of wastes, reduction of production time and minimization of inventory. Last but least, lean consulting also minimizes storage space and enhances efficient use of personnel resources.
The cornerstone to Lean is continuous improvement and this helps in improving people and processes so that they can achieve better results with either the same resources or even less. In essence, lean applies in virtually any process or person’s activities and therefore, has a wide application in the improvement of people and processes.
The lean process thrives in all sectors and disciplines ranging from social care to the medical and engineering fields. In people lean consulting helps in optimizing the workers talents, willpower, knowhow, efforts, time and efforts and translate them into results while adding value by minimizing wastes and improving outputs.
This process eliminates aspects, which increase unnecessary costs, wastes of space, underutilized time and knowledge as well as the non-optimized resource applications. Lean process helps leaders to have the time to be able to lead others. It embraces leading by example. It helps businesses organize their space at the workplace by eliminating the underutilized space.
Space utilization is one of the aspects, which bring a lot of expenses to businesses, which could otherwise be eliminated. For instance, the arrangement of office and production areas could help improve the time workers take to move from one location to another. It also helps streamline the workflow in these critical production areas.
In addition, the lean consulting helps develop a team of workers that fosters resilience, engagement, morale, enthusiasm, flexibility, accountability and optimal use of resources with reduced wastages. There are different types of lean consulting and these include productivity, time, production cost, inventory, floor space, quality, transportation, and human skills.
Different lean practices are carried out to address the commonly identified wastes in business processes. Overproduction is one of the processes, which can cost businesses a lot of money and the lean consultancy helps addresses aspects of overproduction in order to reduce wastes. Organization of time is also a key element of the lean process as it minimizes the time people spend waiting and staying idle.
The movement of people and materials in a plant or business premises should be re-arranged and restructured to ensure that it adds value to the product and service. The inventory control needs to be managed so that there is no excess supply of inventory in business, which could remain underutilized or unsold in the warehouses.
Peoples need to translate their efforts, knowledge, talents and time into results and therefore, they need to be transformed to use the best of their unique skills and abilities. Quality control needs to be enhanced so that there are reduced defects, which could lead to reduced value of products and services.
In essence, lean thinking, though has its origin on the automotive industry; it has successfully been transferred to virtually all disciplines and produce great improvements in elimination of various types of wastes, reduction of production time and minimization of inventory. Last but least, lean consulting also minimizes storage space and enhances efficient use of personnel resources.
What are the Top Applications of Business Intelligence (BI) Systems in SMEs
Businesses create a lot data and for them to use the data meaningfully, they need to use business intelligence applications software to analyse the raw data and translate it into a reliable information. In business processes, companies continuously create data, which may be stored in files, spreadsheets or other forms of databases. This data is a valuable tool for the company in making key decisions and improving the functional role of different departments of the business.
What is business intelligence?
In definition, business intelligence-BI is an umbrella term, meaning that it is a term that carries many terminologies such as data mining, data analytics, data querying and data reporting with use of business intelligence software. It is therefore a process of software applications that is used to analyze an organization’s raw data and provide meaningful information, which can be relied upon in making key business process decisions.
Small businesses are still not embracing the potentials, which are presented by business intelligence tool in their processes because they are reluctant in investing in this essential technology. These small businesses can leverage analytics capabilities and be able to transform their decision-making processes and steer their business to growth. About 40% of the mid-market businesses are interested in predictive analytics software, according to Tachaisle survey. The following are the top applications of business intelligence.
Data visualization
One of the areas of business intelligence applications is in data visualization. This is the process of presenting data in visual graphics, which makes it easier to understand and comprehend. The main goal of data visualization is to enable different people in the business to understand the textual and number information more clearly through visual presentations. Businesses can use graphics to display their sales trends in different periods. Graphical data presentations are essential in making comparisons in business performance.
In addition, data visualization should also be able to stimulate the viewers’ engagement and entice them to capture the details in whole. For instance, a drill down of the sales data entails navigating through the details such as accessing individual product sales in a particular region, and individual sales representative performance details for a particular period of time.
Reporting
Another area of BI application is in reporting. Small businesses can make use of financial reporting and forecasting software tools to understand their financial performances. Furthermore, small businesses like other entities do not operate in “vacuums” meaning that they are in a real business environment where data sharing is essential. One of the aspects in which data is required to be shared is in the field of research. Research is very important as it helps businesses know where they are now and where they are heading.
Knowledge management
BI is also used in knowledge management by business intelligence analyst. Small businesses need to participate actively in knowledge management in order to achieve their set goals. There are knowledge management software systems, which are used in learning management as well as regulatory compliance. Take for example a case where customers walk into your store and don’t buy anything. This doesn’t mean that since there are no sales and customer information that is entered into the databases, the business should not know more about the behaviour of those customers.
Businesses can use the CI systems to carry out surveys and use that data to make inferences as to why the customers are behaving in such a manner. It is also imperative to understand that not all business intelligence tools are applicable to every other small business and therefore, a thorough research and advice should be sort to establish the best viable BI for each small enterprise business entity.
Exploitation
Last but not least, business intelligence is used to measure performance. Like the large corporate, the small businesses need to know where they are today in terms of performance by comparing their previous data, current data and future expectations. This is where business intelligence systems come in handy.
Businesses can have very huge data stored in their systems but if this data is not analyzed to produce key beneficial information, which can be used to make decisions and change business processes for the better, then it remains useless data taking up storage resources for the company. Small businesses need to realize that such data produced by business intelligence software can be used as a tool for reorganizing their business processes.
What is business intelligence?
In definition, business intelligence-BI is an umbrella term, meaning that it is a term that carries many terminologies such as data mining, data analytics, data querying and data reporting with use of business intelligence software. It is therefore a process of software applications that is used to analyze an organization’s raw data and provide meaningful information, which can be relied upon in making key business process decisions.
Small businesses are still not embracing the potentials, which are presented by business intelligence tool in their processes because they are reluctant in investing in this essential technology. These small businesses can leverage analytics capabilities and be able to transform their decision-making processes and steer their business to growth. About 40% of the mid-market businesses are interested in predictive analytics software, according to Tachaisle survey. The following are the top applications of business intelligence.
Data visualization
One of the areas of business intelligence applications is in data visualization. This is the process of presenting data in visual graphics, which makes it easier to understand and comprehend. The main goal of data visualization is to enable different people in the business to understand the textual and number information more clearly through visual presentations. Businesses can use graphics to display their sales trends in different periods. Graphical data presentations are essential in making comparisons in business performance.
In addition, data visualization should also be able to stimulate the viewers’ engagement and entice them to capture the details in whole. For instance, a drill down of the sales data entails navigating through the details such as accessing individual product sales in a particular region, and individual sales representative performance details for a particular period of time.
Reporting
Another area of BI application is in reporting. Small businesses can make use of financial reporting and forecasting software tools to understand their financial performances. Furthermore, small businesses like other entities do not operate in “vacuums” meaning that they are in a real business environment where data sharing is essential. One of the aspects in which data is required to be shared is in the field of research. Research is very important as it helps businesses know where they are now and where they are heading.
Knowledge management
BI is also used in knowledge management by business intelligence analyst. Small businesses need to participate actively in knowledge management in order to achieve their set goals. There are knowledge management software systems, which are used in learning management as well as regulatory compliance. Take for example a case where customers walk into your store and don’t buy anything. This doesn’t mean that since there are no sales and customer information that is entered into the databases, the business should not know more about the behaviour of those customers.
Businesses can use the CI systems to carry out surveys and use that data to make inferences as to why the customers are behaving in such a manner. It is also imperative to understand that not all business intelligence tools are applicable to every other small business and therefore, a thorough research and advice should be sort to establish the best viable BI for each small enterprise business entity.
Exploitation
Last but not least, business intelligence is used to measure performance. Like the large corporate, the small businesses need to know where they are today in terms of performance by comparing their previous data, current data and future expectations. This is where business intelligence systems come in handy.
Businesses can have very huge data stored in their systems but if this data is not analyzed to produce key beneficial information, which can be used to make decisions and change business processes for the better, then it remains useless data taking up storage resources for the company. Small businesses need to realize that such data produced by business intelligence software can be used as a tool for reorganizing their business processes.
Top Benefits of Using Integrated Business Intelligence (BI) Systems
Many companies have invested in business intelligence (BI) systems but most of these are typical BI installations, which entail a mix of various customized and packaged intelligence systems with applications that access data from multiple stores. What this means is that the businesses have not consolidated their BI systems into one large system application, which handles different data inputs. For instance, an accounting system offer finance-oriented data output while marketing and sales system offers information on business marketing.
Using integrated BI systems reduces the number of employees obliged to perform business processes thus saving the businesses the cost of hiring additional workforce. In addition, the turnaround time of creating business reports is reduced significantly. Businesses need reports done in time so that decision-making processes are not stalled. The stagnation of the decision-making process negatively affects business growth and continuity.
In ensuring efficiencies in business processes, the BI tools and systems create benchmarks, which allow companies to easily identify areas of weaknesses and strengths and thus make swift actions to address any shortcomings. The process of mining data from the business data archives can help in uncovering forgotten, hidden or lost data, which can help a business avert past mistakes and learn from the past strategies. With the integrated business intelligence system, these business reports are available on-demand. This makes it easier to drill down and across the details of the report as well as sort and filter the details for easy tabulation.
Moreover, there is increased interactivity within the integrated BI systems as information is easily shared across departments. For instance, data stored in the accounting enterprise resource planning-ERP system and the customer relations management-CRM system is shared through data consolidation, which in turn produces better results in decision making.
As businesses continue to register increased data creation and storage, they are also finding it necessary to use that data in making decisions more quickly. In order to ensure that the huge data created by the systems is turned into meaningful information, integrated BI systems can be used to tabulate and manipulate the data. The unstructured best-of-the breed business intelligence tools are posing a challenge to business executives as the data they get from independent systems is not coordinated into one output platform where it can easily be tabulated.
However, by adopting a standardized BI strategy with help of business intelligence analytics, this helps in integration of the business intelligence for informed decision making. Whereas BI tools are not “decision makers” by themselves, if they are applied consistently and in well structured forms, they can evolve to be tools of enhancing decision making.
In addition, dashboard reports offer current metrics of the performance of the business showing the health and wellbeing of the company in real times. Key performance indicators-KPIs are offered in graphical formats through data visualization so that the users can easily tabulate the data reports. Whether, it is data from the accounting package, payroll systems or the CRM, all this can easily be accessed with the integrated BI systems tools.
Whereas the benefits of integrated BI systems may not be exhaustively covered, it is imperative to mention that companies have benefited from integrated and standardized BI systems because they are cost effective to implement.
In conclusion, as companies embrace business intelligence, it is important that they identify a BI partner who is able to offer integrated BI systems, which can help businesses save in their intelligence investment. Whereas it is difficult to place tangible value on the benefits of BI, businesses can capture the aspect of BI cost and returns on investments (ROI) for their BI investments. This can help in determining the cost of purchasing and applying the systems in data warehousing, information delivery, and data collection, and the associated infrastructure such as software and support resources, needless to mention the expertise required in enterprise business intelligence systems applications.
Using integrated BI systems reduces the number of employees obliged to perform business processes thus saving the businesses the cost of hiring additional workforce. In addition, the turnaround time of creating business reports is reduced significantly. Businesses need reports done in time so that decision-making processes are not stalled. The stagnation of the decision-making process negatively affects business growth and continuity.
In ensuring efficiencies in business processes, the BI tools and systems create benchmarks, which allow companies to easily identify areas of weaknesses and strengths and thus make swift actions to address any shortcomings. The process of mining data from the business data archives can help in uncovering forgotten, hidden or lost data, which can help a business avert past mistakes and learn from the past strategies. With the integrated business intelligence system, these business reports are available on-demand. This makes it easier to drill down and across the details of the report as well as sort and filter the details for easy tabulation.
Moreover, there is increased interactivity within the integrated BI systems as information is easily shared across departments. For instance, data stored in the accounting enterprise resource planning-ERP system and the customer relations management-CRM system is shared through data consolidation, which in turn produces better results in decision making.
As businesses continue to register increased data creation and storage, they are also finding it necessary to use that data in making decisions more quickly. In order to ensure that the huge data created by the systems is turned into meaningful information, integrated BI systems can be used to tabulate and manipulate the data. The unstructured best-of-the breed business intelligence tools are posing a challenge to business executives as the data they get from independent systems is not coordinated into one output platform where it can easily be tabulated.
However, by adopting a standardized BI strategy with help of business intelligence analytics, this helps in integration of the business intelligence for informed decision making. Whereas BI tools are not “decision makers” by themselves, if they are applied consistently and in well structured forms, they can evolve to be tools of enhancing decision making.
In addition, dashboard reports offer current metrics of the performance of the business showing the health and wellbeing of the company in real times. Key performance indicators-KPIs are offered in graphical formats through data visualization so that the users can easily tabulate the data reports. Whether, it is data from the accounting package, payroll systems or the CRM, all this can easily be accessed with the integrated BI systems tools.
Whereas the benefits of integrated BI systems may not be exhaustively covered, it is imperative to mention that companies have benefited from integrated and standardized BI systems because they are cost effective to implement.
In conclusion, as companies embrace business intelligence, it is important that they identify a BI partner who is able to offer integrated BI systems, which can help businesses save in their intelligence investment. Whereas it is difficult to place tangible value on the benefits of BI, businesses can capture the aspect of BI cost and returns on investments (ROI) for their BI investments. This can help in determining the cost of purchasing and applying the systems in data warehousing, information delivery, and data collection, and the associated infrastructure such as software and support resources, needless to mention the expertise required in enterprise business intelligence systems applications.
7 Critical Things to Consider When Choosing a Transportation Management System
Businesses are increasingly focusing on how to optimize their supply chain operations such as transportation and delivery logistics and one way they can achieve this goal is to use transportation management systems. They are compelled to adapt to changing supply chain business environments including choosing a transportation management system that promotes efficiencies. There are many challenges facing large and medium transport organizations and they range from escalating costs due to increased fuel prices to proliferation of many ineffective and incompatible transport management systems- TMS tools in the market.
In order for logistic organizations and departments to improve their efficiencies, reduce costs and overheads as well as grow profits, while at the same time meeting customer satisfaction, they need to integrate the best TMS tools. When choosing a transportation management system, there are numerous factors, which should critically be considered;
1. The TMS technology solutions
Before you embark on any transport management system in your company, you need to analyze what benefits it offers. It is essential that you have a chronology and prioritization of the challenges your company is facing. Logistics organizations and departments want to achieve efficiencies in transport, reduce costs of transportation, optimize on distance and mileage coverage, initiate proper route planning and scheduling, avoid delays in delivery and promote customer satisfaction.
You need to evaluate how the management systems application is able to solve key problematic aspects in your transportation services. In cost management, when choosing a transportation management system, it is important to ensure that it addresses the aspect of load distribution and cost allocation in movement of goods.
The reason is that cost management in logistic companies is a major drawback. These companies are facing difficulties in cost allocation and dispatch scheduling. With fuel price margins not expected to go down, businesses need to streamline their costs of operations in supply chain to ensure high efficiencies in fuel consumption.
2. Upgrading needs of the system
It is important to point out that software application systems are dynamic and changing. This means that you may obtain a transportation management system today and after a few months or years, it is rendered obsolete. When choosing a transportation management system, you should examine the possibilities of upgrading its features to keep pace with new developments.
There are enterprise and network-based TMS solutions. The enterprise based models are highly customizable and require internal infrastructure and this means that if there are upgrades to be done, you have to meet cost of the upgrading the infrastructure too.
3. Data collection, evaluation and reporting
One of the main aims of using transport management systems is to be able to gather essential data that can be used in making decisions. When you are choosing a transportation management system, you need to ensure that it provides key metric data that can easily be interpreted for wise decision making. If the system is able to provide real time information, it means that companies can change their strategies to align with the prevailing transportation challenges and needs.
4. Compatibility/integration of existing management systems
One key aspect logistic companies should evaluate when choosing a transportation management system is its compatibility with the existing enterprise resource planning -ERP. If your TMS easily integrates with other software applications such as warehouse, accounting, purchase and HR resource management system, this means that information is easily shared among all the departments in a company.
With a TMS that fits in the Enterprise Resource Planning Tools, it means that logistic managers can share important information in real time with financial managers, purchasing managers and Human resource managers. This helps in the decision making process. If you are acquiring the best-of-breed TMS tool, you need to ensure that it can be incorporated in the already existing system.
5. User experience and navigation of the software interface
Whether you are using a third party logistics (3PL) tool or an in-house transport management tool, it is important to ensure that it can be accessed easily. The navigation and user interface should be self-guiding and easily maneuvered by users. If you have a complex system, this means that it takes a lot of time for the workers to derive the data they want.
If a staff is drilling down a report to find crucial data, it should easily be found within a click of a few buttons. This is essential because, at times employees accessing the data will need to provide instant feedback to questions raised by vendors and customers about their shipments or transportation orders. This will ensure that customer satisfaction is achieved. What this means is that if the system cannot easily be accessed with straightforward leading interfaces, then it can be complex for it to achieve its intended goal.
6. Sustainability of the TMS
The sustainability of a TMS tool can be analyzed in different perspectives whether in inbound transport, outbound goods movement or fleet management operations. If you are choosing a transportation management system, it should amicably address the aspect of sustainable growth in its application. The system should be able to reduce carbon footprints and environmental degradation, which have a cost implication on the company. It should also be able to provide in-depth analysis through key performance indicators (KPIs) of the aspects such as engine inefficiencies and amount of emission of carbon monoxide.
The system should have a trace back capability in monitoring green logistic infrastructure. It should be able to capture and report shipment information and history. There is need to get prove of the TMS’ reliability and scalability not to acquire a tool that will not be able to perform a few years down the line. This is a mission-critical application that should support current infrastructure and any future expansion and growth of the company.
7. Financial feasibility
Although you may acquire a TMS tool for your business at relatively low cost, if you are not careful, this could be trap that can easily lead your business into financial pitfalls. When you are choosing a transportation management system, you need to leverage current and future cost implications, which range from training of employees to execute the system, upgrading to new versions as well as offering network security measures to avert risks of hacking and theft of essential company information. Most in-house TMS tools can attract additional costs in the future.
This is one main reason why companies are outsourcing for the transportation management system so that they are able to concentrate on the application part. The infrastructure and maintenance tasks are left with the systems vendor, and the logistics companies can concentrate on key aspects of data analysis and implementation of key strategies.
According to a 2012 Supply Chain Software User Survey conducted by Logistics Management (LM), a supply chain news and resource information analyst, it shows that 37% of companies are using TMS. This is an increase from 32% in 2011. The report cites that the use of TMS is slowly-and-steadily gaining a positive growth path. However, companies are facing challenges on how to go about in choosing a transportation management system that fits to their business goals and objectives. In essence, despite the slow adoption of the TMS by logistic companies and departments, this transportation systems management tool has a proven track record of enabling companies adopt efficient and cost effective freight movement only if the right software tool is obtained.
In order for logistic organizations and departments to improve their efficiencies, reduce costs and overheads as well as grow profits, while at the same time meeting customer satisfaction, they need to integrate the best TMS tools. When choosing a transportation management system, there are numerous factors, which should critically be considered;
1. The TMS technology solutions
Before you embark on any transport management system in your company, you need to analyze what benefits it offers. It is essential that you have a chronology and prioritization of the challenges your company is facing. Logistics organizations and departments want to achieve efficiencies in transport, reduce costs of transportation, optimize on distance and mileage coverage, initiate proper route planning and scheduling, avoid delays in delivery and promote customer satisfaction.
You need to evaluate how the management systems application is able to solve key problematic aspects in your transportation services. In cost management, when choosing a transportation management system, it is important to ensure that it addresses the aspect of load distribution and cost allocation in movement of goods.
The reason is that cost management in logistic companies is a major drawback. These companies are facing difficulties in cost allocation and dispatch scheduling. With fuel price margins not expected to go down, businesses need to streamline their costs of operations in supply chain to ensure high efficiencies in fuel consumption.
2. Upgrading needs of the system
It is important to point out that software application systems are dynamic and changing. This means that you may obtain a transportation management system today and after a few months or years, it is rendered obsolete. When choosing a transportation management system, you should examine the possibilities of upgrading its features to keep pace with new developments.
There are enterprise and network-based TMS solutions. The enterprise based models are highly customizable and require internal infrastructure and this means that if there are upgrades to be done, you have to meet cost of the upgrading the infrastructure too.
3. Data collection, evaluation and reporting
One of the main aims of using transport management systems is to be able to gather essential data that can be used in making decisions. When you are choosing a transportation management system, you need to ensure that it provides key metric data that can easily be interpreted for wise decision making. If the system is able to provide real time information, it means that companies can change their strategies to align with the prevailing transportation challenges and needs.
4. Compatibility/integration of existing management systems
One key aspect logistic companies should evaluate when choosing a transportation management system is its compatibility with the existing enterprise resource planning -ERP. If your TMS easily integrates with other software applications such as warehouse, accounting, purchase and HR resource management system, this means that information is easily shared among all the departments in a company.
With a TMS that fits in the Enterprise Resource Planning Tools, it means that logistic managers can share important information in real time with financial managers, purchasing managers and Human resource managers. This helps in the decision making process. If you are acquiring the best-of-breed TMS tool, you need to ensure that it can be incorporated in the already existing system.
5. User experience and navigation of the software interface
Whether you are using a third party logistics (3PL) tool or an in-house transport management tool, it is important to ensure that it can be accessed easily. The navigation and user interface should be self-guiding and easily maneuvered by users. If you have a complex system, this means that it takes a lot of time for the workers to derive the data they want.
If a staff is drilling down a report to find crucial data, it should easily be found within a click of a few buttons. This is essential because, at times employees accessing the data will need to provide instant feedback to questions raised by vendors and customers about their shipments or transportation orders. This will ensure that customer satisfaction is achieved. What this means is that if the system cannot easily be accessed with straightforward leading interfaces, then it can be complex for it to achieve its intended goal.
6. Sustainability of the TMS
The sustainability of a TMS tool can be analyzed in different perspectives whether in inbound transport, outbound goods movement or fleet management operations. If you are choosing a transportation management system, it should amicably address the aspect of sustainable growth in its application. The system should be able to reduce carbon footprints and environmental degradation, which have a cost implication on the company. It should also be able to provide in-depth analysis through key performance indicators (KPIs) of the aspects such as engine inefficiencies and amount of emission of carbon monoxide.
The system should have a trace back capability in monitoring green logistic infrastructure. It should be able to capture and report shipment information and history. There is need to get prove of the TMS’ reliability and scalability not to acquire a tool that will not be able to perform a few years down the line. This is a mission-critical application that should support current infrastructure and any future expansion and growth of the company.
7. Financial feasibility
Although you may acquire a TMS tool for your business at relatively low cost, if you are not careful, this could be trap that can easily lead your business into financial pitfalls. When you are choosing a transportation management system, you need to leverage current and future cost implications, which range from training of employees to execute the system, upgrading to new versions as well as offering network security measures to avert risks of hacking and theft of essential company information. Most in-house TMS tools can attract additional costs in the future.
This is one main reason why companies are outsourcing for the transportation management system so that they are able to concentrate on the application part. The infrastructure and maintenance tasks are left with the systems vendor, and the logistics companies can concentrate on key aspects of data analysis and implementation of key strategies.
According to a 2012 Supply Chain Software User Survey conducted by Logistics Management (LM), a supply chain news and resource information analyst, it shows that 37% of companies are using TMS. This is an increase from 32% in 2011. The report cites that the use of TMS is slowly-and-steadily gaining a positive growth path. However, companies are facing challenges on how to go about in choosing a transportation management system that fits to their business goals and objectives. In essence, despite the slow adoption of the TMS by logistic companies and departments, this transportation systems management tool has a proven track record of enabling companies adopt efficient and cost effective freight movement only if the right software tool is obtained.
Prepaid Credit Cards...a Killer to those Wishing To Repair Damaged Credit Score
When prepaid credit cards first hit the market, they were they were pitched as good options for those who could not qualify for credit cards. However, these prepaid credit cards are actually debit cards because they do not carry credit limit. You can only use what is loaded on the debit card and no more and therefore it does not provide credit facilities like you would find with credit cards. If you have less-than-stellar credit, it means that the first priority is building the score. This cannot be achieved with prepaid debit cards because they do not offer credit and no payments are reported to credit reporting agencies.
If your credit is bad, you should work on bringing it to better levels so that you have access to regular credit cards, low interest personal loans and other credit facilities. A secured credit card can help you raise your score and the good thing with this card is that it is accessible to anyone with good or bad credit. What you need to do is look for some money to put as deposit against the card. That deposit acts as the collateral or security against the credit on that card.
Secured credit cards attract low interest rates and can help you push up your score to a better higher point. The deposit you place against the secured card is not used and only remains on the account until you close your account. The reason why prepaid cards are killer to those focussing on bringing up their credit score is because they cost the card holder a lot of money in terms of fees. If you check the monthly fees charged by prepaid cards, they are far way above the fees for bad credit secured credit cards even those, which attract annual fees.
For example, if you acquire American express prepaid card, and you reload the card and use it in the ATM two times each month, you are likely to pay a cost of about $11.90 per month. This comes from the card loading fee of $9.90 and the ATM fees of $2. An ideal secured card can cost you about $4 to $6.5 per month. This means that at the end of the year, you can save a lot of money with secured credit cards.
A prepaid debit card only adds more burden to your spending because of the fees. Although consumers say that they do not worry about the fees, this cannot be overlooked because it contributes to the state of indebtedness. The prepaid card does not allow you to enjoy credit facilities. It cannot help you rebuild your bad score and it will cost you more in monthly fees.
Perhaps a prepaid card is not designed for people who are truly working hard to have their score push upwards. Prepaid debit cards are known to help those with lose money-spending morals and who cannot hold money in their accounts. You can use these cards to put a gauge on your spending patterns and habits. You only load what you want to spend in specific time and after spending what is on the card, no credit. You must reload your prepaid debit card again.
If your credit is bad, you should work on bringing it to better levels so that you have access to regular credit cards, low interest personal loans and other credit facilities. A secured credit card can help you raise your score and the good thing with this card is that it is accessible to anyone with good or bad credit. What you need to do is look for some money to put as deposit against the card. That deposit acts as the collateral or security against the credit on that card.
Secured credit cards attract low interest rates and can help you push up your score to a better higher point. The deposit you place against the secured card is not used and only remains on the account until you close your account. The reason why prepaid cards are killer to those focussing on bringing up their credit score is because they cost the card holder a lot of money in terms of fees. If you check the monthly fees charged by prepaid cards, they are far way above the fees for bad credit secured credit cards even those, which attract annual fees.
For example, if you acquire American express prepaid card, and you reload the card and use it in the ATM two times each month, you are likely to pay a cost of about $11.90 per month. This comes from the card loading fee of $9.90 and the ATM fees of $2. An ideal secured card can cost you about $4 to $6.5 per month. This means that at the end of the year, you can save a lot of money with secured credit cards.
A prepaid debit card only adds more burden to your spending because of the fees. Although consumers say that they do not worry about the fees, this cannot be overlooked because it contributes to the state of indebtedness. The prepaid card does not allow you to enjoy credit facilities. It cannot help you rebuild your bad score and it will cost you more in monthly fees.
Perhaps a prepaid card is not designed for people who are truly working hard to have their score push upwards. Prepaid debit cards are known to help those with lose money-spending morals and who cannot hold money in their accounts. You can use these cards to put a gauge on your spending patterns and habits. You only load what you want to spend in specific time and after spending what is on the card, no credit. You must reload your prepaid debit card again.
Prepaid Debit Cards... Some 4 Viable Alternatives to Prepaid Debit Cards
Prepaid debit cards can enable you manage your spending patterns so that you do not overspend your money. These cards also enable you alleviate some of the troubles that come with credit cards such as late or missed payments as well as over-the-limit penalties. However, prepaid cards come with fees such as ATM withdrawal fee, annual fees, monthly fees, transfer fees, loading fees and other types of charges. It has been argued that prepaid cards are costly than some checking accounts. They are also costly than secured credit cards but despite these aspects, people are preferring use of prepaid cards.
Prepaid credit cards do not help in rebuilding credit score because they do not offer loans or credit limits. Therefore, card issuers or banks do not report the card usage in credit reporting companies like Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. Below are 3 alternatives to prepaid debit cards;
1. Secured credit cards
Although there are many alternative to prepaid debit cards, the right choice is determined by the reason why you are looking for a prepaid debit card in the first place. If you are seeking for a card to use when you are in bad credit, then a secured credit may be the right choice. Prepaid debit card cannot help you repair your damaged score and therefore if you have a less-than-stellar credit score, then you would better seek for secured credit card.
It only requires you to seek for a few hundreds of dollars to put as deposit against the secured card. A secured card cannot cost you more than a prepaid debit card if you make balance payment in time. The secured credit card will help you build your score and eventually qualify for a regular credit card.
If you are seeking for an alternative for a prepaid debit card, you may consider secured credit cards from Capital One and Citibank. These are primed institutions that offer secured cards with low fees and also an option to be able to trade up or increase the credit limit after 12-18 months if you demonstrate that you can really use the card wisely and competently without late payments and over-the-limit use.
2. Unsecured credit cards
Besides the secured credit cards, there are also unsecured cards and these are designed for those people who cannot afford to pay the little deposit to secure a secured credit card. However, an unsecured credit card opens doors for fees levied by banks and card issuers and therefore, they may not be a perfect alternative to prepaid debit cards. Some banks are helping people with stinky or bad credit by offering them credit cards with low limits so that they develop their scores.
3. Rewards checking accounts
If you want to control and manage your spending, instead of going for a prepaid debit card, you can opt for rewards checking account. With this checking account, you cannot overdraw and this means that you do not incur the over-the-limit fees charged on credit cards. With this account, you can transfer money between your checking account and saving account. A rewards checking account can also earn you interest. It is important to check a reward checking account that offers low minimum balance. Instead of losing money through prepaid debit cards fees, you can earn as much as 4% with high-yield checking accounts.
4. Cashback debit cards
Moreover, you may choose a cashback debit card. Rather than going for prepaid debit card, you may choose a cashback debit card which works comparatively the same as prepaid debit card but you can get refunds or cashbacks on your purchases. This means that you save about 1 to2 percent on your purchases. This can help meet some of the fees that come with these debit cards.
Prepaid credit cards do not help in rebuilding credit score because they do not offer loans or credit limits. Therefore, card issuers or banks do not report the card usage in credit reporting companies like Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. Below are 3 alternatives to prepaid debit cards;
1. Secured credit cards
Although there are many alternative to prepaid debit cards, the right choice is determined by the reason why you are looking for a prepaid debit card in the first place. If you are seeking for a card to use when you are in bad credit, then a secured credit may be the right choice. Prepaid debit card cannot help you repair your damaged score and therefore if you have a less-than-stellar credit score, then you would better seek for secured credit card.
It only requires you to seek for a few hundreds of dollars to put as deposit against the secured card. A secured card cannot cost you more than a prepaid debit card if you make balance payment in time. The secured credit card will help you build your score and eventually qualify for a regular credit card.
If you are seeking for an alternative for a prepaid debit card, you may consider secured credit cards from Capital One and Citibank. These are primed institutions that offer secured cards with low fees and also an option to be able to trade up or increase the credit limit after 12-18 months if you demonstrate that you can really use the card wisely and competently without late payments and over-the-limit use.
2. Unsecured credit cards
Besides the secured credit cards, there are also unsecured cards and these are designed for those people who cannot afford to pay the little deposit to secure a secured credit card. However, an unsecured credit card opens doors for fees levied by banks and card issuers and therefore, they may not be a perfect alternative to prepaid debit cards. Some banks are helping people with stinky or bad credit by offering them credit cards with low limits so that they develop their scores.
3. Rewards checking accounts
If you want to control and manage your spending, instead of going for a prepaid debit card, you can opt for rewards checking account. With this checking account, you cannot overdraw and this means that you do not incur the over-the-limit fees charged on credit cards. With this account, you can transfer money between your checking account and saving account. A rewards checking account can also earn you interest. It is important to check a reward checking account that offers low minimum balance. Instead of losing money through prepaid debit cards fees, you can earn as much as 4% with high-yield checking accounts.
4. Cashback debit cards
Moreover, you may choose a cashback debit card. Rather than going for prepaid debit card, you may choose a cashback debit card which works comparatively the same as prepaid debit card but you can get refunds or cashbacks on your purchases. This means that you save about 1 to2 percent on your purchases. This can help meet some of the fees that come with these debit cards.
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